Royal wedding cakes are an interesting and unusual thing)) They are not only beautiful and probably delicious, but also fraught with mysteries and surprises.
Britannia
English traditions of wedding cakes are very original.
An English wedding cake is actually a cupcake.
It is prepared, as a rule, a month before the celebration. Its preparation requires a huge amount of dried fruits - raisins, prunes, cherries, nuts, etc., and after baking it is soaked daily with rum and cognac.
Thanks to this, the cake can be stored for a very long time, literally decades.
A piece of cake is left and removed at the birth of a child. These pieces are stored in special closed boxes, in a film wrapper.
For example, William and Kate left three of these pieces from their wedding cake.
And in the British royal family, there has long been a tradition - one of the pieces of the wedding cake is left for sale at auction.
And yet, they are given to wedding guests, relatives and friends. 
English wedding cakes are lavishly decorated. The decor is figurines of the newlyweds, scenes from their lives, national symbols of Britain, etc.
Fragment of the cake of Elizabeth and Philip
It is customary to serve two cakes at an English wedding. One main cake is the cupcake cake mentioned above, and the second is the groom's cake. Groom cakes are usually chocolate. They are served at the end of the celebration.
Prince William Cake
And inside it is such our chocolate sausage
Wessex Cakes
At the wedding, Edward and Sophie decided to play a trick - they, contrary to tradition, began the celebration with the fact that all the guests were given chocolate cake and then the wedding banquet began
Basic
And the groom's cake
English wedding cakes are so popular and loved that this particular cake was chosen as their Norwegian wedding cake. Crown Prince Haakon and his fiancee Mette Marit. And it was decorated with symbols related to the history of Norway.
Denmark
In the Danish Royal Family at a wedding, it was customary to serve a cornucopia as a cake. It symbolized the future well-being of the couple.
This tradition was broken with the advent of Princess Mary in the family. Mary really wanted to have a cake at her wedding with Crown Prince Frederik, and not a Horn. And Queen Margrethe gave in to her future daughter-in-law and changed the tradition. At her request, the confectioners baked a cake, and Margrethe herself came up with the design of the cake.
The cake is covered with white icing, inside is a biscuit, white chocolate mousse, etc. It is decorated with the monograms of the newlyweds, and caramel figurines of Mary and Fred crown it.
And this is Joachim and Marie's cake
Netherlands
The current Queen Maxima of the Netherlands is Argentinian by birth. And this was not forgotten when they prepared the cake for her wedding to Willem Alexander. According to the Argentine tradition, you need to pull the ribbon on the cake, and under it there is a surprise!
East and Africa
Cakes at Eastern and African royal weddings are a special story))
And the highlight is that these cakes are made in a special way. Their outer part is inedible - it is for beauty and decoration, and only what is inside is served for treats. Or, only the top of the cake is edible, and the bottom part goes as a decoration.
King Hussein and Nur
Wedding Cake of the King of Lesotho
Cake, or maybe not a cake?
At the wedding Princesses Madeleine and Chris
Jean and Philumena of Vendôme
Archduke Christoph and Adelaide
There were pasta pyramid cakes. But these are not quite cakes - these are coasters on which macarons are attached. Coasters are decorated to look like cakes, but they are usually made from non-edible materials. However, they are made in such a way that you don’t even know about it))))) Although, it also happens that the “stand” is also a cake.
And further
Sometimes, the main cakes are prepared only for the traditional cut of the bride and groom and to decorate the holiday, and small individual cakes are baked for the guests.
So it was at the wedding Princess Iman (daughter of King Hussein and Queen Noor)
Pavlos and Marie Chantal of Greece
Infanta Helena and Jaime Marichalar
PS: If anyone knows what kind of "red ingradiet" the Infanta Elena had in the cake, please tell us. The same, only in large quantities was her sister Christina :)
There was information that these are berries, and other information. that it is something caramel. In general, it is not known for certain
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Weddings of members of the British royal family must comply with many traditions, rules and protocol, developed over the decades of the existence of the royal house of Windsor. After all, British monarchs are the stronghold of traditionalism, and the wedding will forever go down in history. We got acquainted with the most important royal wedding rules.
website talks about the interesting wedding traditions of the British royal family.
1. Obtaining a marriage license
The tradition of casting wedding rings for the brides of the British royal family from Welsh gold began in 1923 - this is exactly the ring that was at the wedding of the Queen - mother of Elizabeth, the great-grandmother of Princes William and Harry.
The resources of the mine, the metal from which was used to make the royal rings, have already been exhausted, and it is closed. Welsh gold is scarce, so it costs 5 times more than other types of gold. Wedding rings of Princess Elizabeth II, Diana of Wales, Duchess of Cornwall, Duchess of Cambridge are made of this metal. Meghan Markle's ring is also made from a Welsh gold nugget that Queen Elizabeth II gave her.
3. A bouquet on the grave of an unknown soldier
Instead of throwing a bouquet at a crowd of unmarried friends, royal brides lay flowers at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Westminster Abbey in London. This tradition was started by Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, mother of Elizabeth II. Before entering Westminster Abbey on her wedding day, she stopped to lay flowers at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. So she honored the memory of her brother Fergus, who died in 1915 at the Battle of Loos, and all the British soldiers who died in the First World War.
Lady Elizabeth was the first bride to walk down the aisle without a bouquet in her hands, having laid flowers before entering the church. These days, the brides of the royal family do it the day after the ceremony, when all the official wedding photos are taken.
4. Formal wedding portrait
Another tradition of royal weddings is the official photo session. It is usually held between the marriage ceremony and the wedding reception. The first British monarch to do this was King Edward VII.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have chosen as their wedding photographer Alexi Lubomirski, one of the most sought-after fashion photographers, who has already photographed the couple for their official engagement portraits. In addition to traditional portraits surrounded by family, as well as pages and bridesmaids, Lubomirski made a romantic shot in which the newlyweds pose sitting on the steps of Windsor Castle.
5. Groom in military uniform
The men of the British royal family are required to serve in the army, have a military rank and are assigned to any regiment. They marry, according to tradition, in full dress military uniform, while putting on all the orders that they have earned. No tuxedos, no tailcoats, no ties at the wedding they are not supposed to.
6. Embroidery with meaning on the dress or veil of the bride
On the wedding dress and veil of Elizabeth II, who married in 1947, there was a floral pattern as a symbol of the reign of peace that came after the end of World War II.
Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, asked for 53 plants to be embroidered on her veil, each of which symbolizes the states that are members of the Commonwealth of Nations - a voluntary association of 53 sovereign states that includes the UK and almost all of its former colonies. Queen Elizabeth II has appointed Prince Harry as Commonwealth Youth Ambassador. And Megan's choice of just such an embroidery symbolizes her pride in her husband and her willingness to help him in this position.
In addition to the plants of the states - members of the Commonwealth, Megan chose two more - the ivy-leaved veronica, growing on the territory of Kensington Palace, and the California escholium, the symbol of the state of California, where Megan was born. On the official website of the royal family, you can get acquainted with complete list plants embroidered on the veil.
7. Something new, something old, something borrowed and something blue
According to tradition, any English bride should have something new, something old, something borrowed and something blue in her wedding dress.
In the wedding image of Kate Middleton, the diamond earrings that her parents gave her were new, and the Irish lace decorating the bodice of the dress was old. There was a piece of blue ribbon sewn into the lining of her dress. As for the thing borrowed, Kate, like Meghan Markle, has become a tiara borrowed from Queen Elizabeth II.
1. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle cake
Almost everything is ready for the wedding of the year, scheduled for May 19: Harry and Meghan have already chosen a cake, which they will enjoy with the guests at the celebration. The preparation of the royal dessert was entrusted to chef Claire Ptek, the owner of the London confectionery Violet Cakes. Future newlyweds know a lot about simple joys - together with the guests they will enjoy a lemon cake with elderberry and butter cream decorated with spring flowers. Claire wholeheartedly approves of this choice: “I am very pleased that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle choose natural products and love the same scents as me.”
2. Prince William and Kate Middleton Cake
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge had two wedding cakes at once. The first, chosen by the bride, amazed the imagination and all taste buds. Celebrity pastry chef Fiona Cairns has created eight tiers of whipped cream and white icing, decorated with sugar flowers, leaves and petals in seventeen shades of white. The dessert is full of symbolism: roses personified the happiness of the newlyweds, lilies of the valley - calmness, acorns - patience and strength, and the cream crown spoke for itself. The second cake was ordered by Prince William - a chocolate biscuit prepared according to the recipe of the chefs at Buckingham Palace.
3. Cake of Princess Elizabeth and Lieutenant Philip Mountbatten
The wedding dessert of Elizabeth II, without exaggeration, was grandiose: a four-tiered cake three meters high and weighing 227 kilograms. The ingredients for the confectionery masterpiece, prepared according to the recipe of Girl Guides Australia, were delivered from different countries: fruits and dried fruits came from Australia, rum - almost 16 liters! is from Jamaica, the flour is from Canada, and the butter is from New Zealand. The cake, cut at the ceremony with the groom's sword, made such a strong gastronomic impression that 70 years later, London pastry chefs prepared the same one - in honor of the "platinum wedding" of the British Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh.
4. Prince Charles and Diana Spencer Cake
To bake a classic British fruit cake with cream icing at David Avery, Head Pastry Chef at the Royal navy took 14 weeks. Time was not spent in vain: a one and a half meter wedding dessert with marzipans, frozen fruits, white creamy ice and dark cognac spirit eclipsed the other 27 royal cakes that awaited guests at the gala reception. 34 years later, a piece of the famous dessert was sold at an auction in Los Angeles for $1,375.
5. Cake of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert
Actually, the history of all wedding cakes began with this treat - until 1840 they were not considered something special at all. Queen Victoria demanded that at the reception at Buckingham Palace, the newlyweds and their high-ranking guests should have the most luxurious, sophisticated and aristocratic cake possible right in the morning. The confectioners succeeded in everything: on top of a 136-kilogram cake, decorated with snow-white orange blossom, there was a figure of Great Britain, blessing the union of the bride and groom.
The 34-year-old piece of cake that was served when Prince Charles and Princess Diana married in 1981 sold at auction in December 2015 for $1,375.
Unusual auction
One of the auctions in Los Angeles announced that the central lot will be a piece of historical sweets. It was said that bidding would start at $1,100. Described as a "classic British fruit cake with cream cheese frosting", the piece of cake was baked by British Navy Chief Baker David Avery, packaged in tissue paper and wax paper, and presented in a silver gift box. It was also accompanied by a congratulatory card that read: "Best regards from their Royal Highnesses The Prince and Princess of Wales." It was noted on the auction page that the item was in very good condition despite being food that is older than Prince William.
Sales history
However, it is worth noting that this is not the first piece of royal pie to be auctioned. In September, an even older example of a wedding cake, from the marriage of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip in 1947, was also auctioned off for $750. In 2013, a piece of cake from the wedding of Princess Kate and William (2011) was sold for an incredible amount - four thousand dollars. It was that incident that inspired all subsequent ones. It's also worth noting that this isn't even the first piece of Lady Di and Charles' wedding cake to be auctioned off. In 2014, the exact same one was also sold for $1,375.
Fruit Cake Secret
It would seem, how could the cake be preserved for so long, even if it was stored in excellent conditions? After all, we are talking about 34 years (and in some cases much more time)! In fact, everything is quite simple - the secret is that the royal wedding cake is always a traditional fruit cake, and it has its own secrets. The fact is that it is impregnated with alcohol, because of which it becomes much more "tenacious". Moreover, the longer such a cake is stored, the better it tastes - that is why these lots turned out to be in demand. They were not covered in mold, were not terrible and disgusting in appearance - in fact, it is quite possible that they were very edible. So buyers paid over a thousand dollars for more than just getting something that once belonged to legendary royalty. In fact, there is a high possibility that they may have eaten this iconic fruit pie. Naturally, the probability of this is extremely small, because such an instance has a high historical value, but no one knows what a person has in mind. Therefore, the royal cake and its fate will now remain unknown since it was auctioned off. However, the very fact of this is striking and once again emphasizes how important the monarchy is as a symbol for British society. Nowhere in the world is the royal family more respected and praised than in the UK.
Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden and Daniel, Duke of VästergetlandPrince Harry and Meghan Markle's wedding cake could be the first non-banal cake in the history of royal British weddings (and one of the few among European ones), of course, if the prince's wishes for something "yellow, light and banana-caramel" come true. However, the couple have recently reconsidered their priorities, and now they are asking the pastry chef (according to the UK media, this will be Claire Ptak, the owner of the London pastry shop Violet Bakery) to add lemon notes to their main dessert. Let's see if one of Britain's most atypical royal couples can withstand the onslaught of this tradition, because royal newlyweds usually choose a fruit biscuit with a nut filling.
Cakes of the (possibly) future royal pastry chef, and "drafts" of Harry and Meghan's wedding cake:
The design raises even more questions: the chosen lucky woman gravitates towards a very restrained style of performing culinary masterpieces, and royal wedding treats are usually richly decorated. We recall what kind of cakes the most famous married monarchs treated guests at wedding receptions earlier.
Queen Victoria and Prince Albert (1840)
George VI and Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon (1923)
At the wedding of the father and mother of the current Queen of the British Commonwealth, the guests saw a magnificent array of white glaze, which took a height of more than 3 meters. True, before the fantastic cake was shown to the general public in Reading (Berkshire) shortly before the wedding itself, which took place on April 26, 1923.
Duke of Kent and Princess Marina of Greece and Denmark (1934)
Deja vu, right? The wedding cake of the Duke of Kent George surprisingly resembles the cake of his brother George VI: the same 4 tiers, mastic monograms and rich floral decorations. The main thing that distinguished George's cake was the Greek columns separating the tiers of biscuit, which gave away the nationality of the bride born in Athens.
Elizabeth II and Philip (1947)
Princess Margaret and Anthony Armstrong-Jones (1960)
Princess Anne and Captain Mark Phillips (1973)
The only daughter of the British Queen married Mark Phillips in Westminster Abbey, and the television broadcast was followed by millions of people around the world. The photograph shows how Major David Dodd from the Army School of Cooking conjures up the couple's wedding cake, decorating it with fondant. Anna and Mark's wedding cake weighed a little over 65 kg, and it took 4.5 kg of butter and sugar, 84 eggs and 5.5 kg of flour, as well as more than 30 (!) kg of fruits, candied fruits and nuts, and two bottles brandy. Its tiers were decorated with the family crests of the newlyweds, and the top one was crowned with a silver vase with flowers.
Prince Charles and Diana Spurser (1981)
Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson (1986)
Cooked at the Royal School of the British Navy in Torpoint, Prince Andrew's wedding cake, like his brother's, was also five-tiered, weighed about 110 kg and reached a height of 1.5 meters, and in general was very similar to him. Andrew and Sarah's cake was marzipan, and 15 ingredients were used in its recipe, including a savory alcohol component (port wine, rum, brandy).
Prince William and Kate Middleton (2011)
Two cakes were served at the wedding: a chocolate biscuit and a traditional "white" wedding cake. The latter may not have been as huge as the cakes of William's parents or grandparents, but quite impressive. Kate and William opted for an intricate fruit-based eight-tiered arrangement of 17 individual standard cakes, topped with cream and icing and decorated with some 900 sugar paste flowers. Interestingly, the decoration of the central tiers of the cake corresponds to the design of the art gallery in Buckingham Palace, where the cake was first shown before the wedding. A large number of flowers on the cake was explained by a special "flower language", according to which roses meant the traditional symbol of England, shamrock - Ireland, thistle - Scotland, and daffodil - Wales. Also among the decorations were acorns (endurance), ivy - marital love, apple blossom (luck) and orange (fertility), chamomile (innocence), lavender - success and good luck. The authorship of the cake belongs to confectioner Fiona Cairns, who, together with the team, prepared the masterpiece for 5 weeks.
